At Sāvatthī.
“Mendicants, if wanderers who follow another religion were to ask you: ‘Reverends, what’s the goal of leading the spiritual life under the ascetic Gotama?’ You should answer them like this: ‘The goal of leading the spiritual life under the Buddha is complete extinguishment with no fuel for grasping.’
If wanderers of other religions were to ask you: ‘Is there a path and a practice for complete extinguishment with no fuel for grasping?’ You should answer them like this: ‘There is a path and a practice for complete extinguishment with no fuel for grasping.’
And what is that path, what is that practice for complete extinguishment with no fuel for grasping? It is simply this noble eightfold path, that is: right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right immersion. This is the path, this is the practice for complete extinguishment with no fuel for grasping.
When questioned by wanderers of other religions, that’s how you should answer them.”